1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to telephony. In particular, the present invention is directed to a procedure for implementing event-based billing for and in conjunction with services provided to consumers via terminal equipment, such as a telephone.
2. Description of the Related Art
At present, teleoperatorsxe2x80x94i.e. those who operate and maintain telecommunication networks and systems for use by system subscribers or usersxe2x80x94provide a variety of services that are available to users of the network by telephone. Teleoperators may also sell or rent systems for use by outside service providers to provide such services, to organize and conduct polls by telephone, or to carry out other corresponding kinds of operation via telephonic communication.
A significant problem with current implementations is that a separate telephone number is needed for each differently-priced service and event. Therefore, in order to provide telephonic services, a multiplicity of distinct telephone numbers must be maintained and advertised, resulting in complex and confusing advertisements. Another problem with current systems is that after receiving one service, i.e. after a customer has called a service number and ordered or received a desired service, the customer needs to hang up and make another, separate call to the same or another service number to obtain or use a different servicexe2x80x94even if the customer wishes to purchase additional services during the same call.
A practical example of this problem arises in a short-message sales service in which, upon receipt of an order from a customer, short messages containing for example weather information, news, ticket information, etc. can be sent to a terminal device selected by the customer. In the framework of currently-implemented technology, the customer can order a single predetermined message by calling a so-called intelligent network number, all calls to which are charged to the customer at a rate defined for this particular use, and the customer being billed at that rate for each call made to the intelligent network number. As a consequence, a separate intelligent network number must be provided for, by way of example, each differently-priced weather information message. Moreover, the customer can be charged only once, i.e. for only a single message transmission request, during each call.
It is accordingly the desideratum of the present invention to eliminate the drawbacks and deficiencies of the prior art, as for example described hereinabove.
It is a specific object of the invention is to provide a procedure that allows intelligent event-based payment for services implemented by means of telecommunication network components.
It is a further object of the invention to provide such a system in which a customer can order or purchase and be charged for a plurality of services by calling and during a telecommunications connection via a single telephone number.
In the inventive procedure for implementing event-based billing of services provided via a telecommunication network, a service is ordered by a customer using a terminal device, such for example as a wired or wireless telephone, via the telecommunication network. The telecommunication network preferably comprises an intelligent network that typically includes a service control point (SCP), a service switching point (SSP) and/or an intelligent peripheral (IP), and a number of telephone exchanges as well as the data transmission channels between and connecting them. As used herein, an intelligent peripheral (IP) is a device that, in a preferred form, can be remotely controlledxe2x80x94e.g. through the use of user-selected of tone frequency tones of a telephonexe2x80x94to cause it to carry out desired functions and which may be provided with a vocalized menu or the like to present to a calling subscriber a list of the available services. The intelligent network (IN) is not a separate network but, rather, an assemblage of devices and components and programming integrated with a normal telephone network and implemented to realize additional call features such, for example, as call transfer, hold for consultation, call waiting, etc. The desired service is ordered by the subscriber from a predetermined service address, which is preferably a telephone number corresponding to the service but which may alternatively be any type of address designation capable of routing the subscriber""s call or communication or request to the desired service, that the customer utilizes to set up a connection by telephone. The call corresponding to the order or request is transmitted to the intelligent network where, based on the order, the actions required to provide the service are carried out and/or the performances associated with the service are transmitted back to the terminal device.
In accordance with the invention, a connection is set up between the user""s terminal device and the intelligent peripheral and, using the terminal device, a particular service that is to be transmitted to the terminal devicexe2x80x94as for example in the form of a short messagexe2x80x94is selected in the intelligent peripheral. After the resulting or ensuing transmission of the service, an assessment request based on the selected service is delivered from the intelligent peripheral to the service control point, and an event-based bill for the customerxe2x80x94based on the assessment requests sent by the peripheralxe2x80x94is generated. In a preferred implementation, to generate the bill a request to form a ticket based on the assessment request is sent from the service control point to the service switching point and the tickets thus formed are sent to a billing system, at which an event-based bill is produced by carrying out predetermined actions. The assessment request and, generally also the ticket, preferably contain information identifying the terminal device, such as the A-subscriber number, and accurate data relating to the service that has been ordered and for which the customer is to be charged on the basis of the order.
In a preferred implementation of the invention, the telecommunication network includes a gateway server for further transmission of the service. In such an implementation, an acknowledgement of the service being transmitted is preferably received from the gateway server, the acknowledgement thus confirming that the terminal device has received the service and initiating the generation of a bill by transmission of an assessment request from the service control point. Generally, the service provider supplies the teleoperator maintaining the telecommunication network and the equipment required for providing the service with information relating to the billing principles or tariff schedule, and this information is stored in the teleoperator""s billing system.
In a further preferred embodiment of the invention, the services are addititionally transmitted from the gateway server to a short-message service center or a corresponding device or location, from which they are to be transmitted to the terminal device. Alternatively, the services can also be transmitted directly from the intelligent peripheral to the terminal device. In the most preferred forms of the invention, the terminal device is a mobile station, an ISDN system subscription or a like digital receiver.
As compared with prior art arrangements, the present invention advantageously allows billing for services provided via a telecommunication network to be implemented on an event-based, rather than a call-based, principle. A further advantage of the invention is that it makes it unnecessary to reserve a separate intelligent network number for each differently priced service, thus accommodating easier provision of services to consumers.
Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawing. It is to be understood, however, that the drawing is designed solely for purposes of illustration and not as a definition of the limits of the invention, for which reference should be made to the appended claims. It should be further understood that the drawing is not necessarily drawn to scale and that, unless otherwise indicated, it is merely intended to conceptually illustrate the structures and procedures described herein.